“Into the Inferno”: As the title promises, Werner Herzog’s latest globe-trotting adventure plunges us into the bowels of earth. But there’s more at play than surreal images of lava spewing a la a disaster flick. The versatile filmmaker aims high to connect how volcanoes have shaped history, cultures and our environment. Herzog fears nothing, except boredom, and he and volcanologist Clive Oppenheimer, author of 2011’s “Eruptions That Shook the World,” take us on a wild tour of volcano hot spots, where we hear from inhabitants living in fear of nature’s unsparing force and meet the sometimes dangerously curious researchers in locales that include Indonesia, New Zealand and Iceland. Watch for an appearance by UC-Berkeley’s palaeoanthropologist Tim White in East Africa. (Netflix) 1:44

“Sky Ladder: The Art of Cai Guo-Qiang”: The Chinese-born artist generated many oohs and ahhs worldwide with his controversial fireworks ceremonies at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. In director Kevin Macdonald’s gorgeous documentary we see the incredible depth of his creativity and hear what compels him to do follow ambitious pursuits. Macdonald dedicates most time to showing Cai’s grand spectacles, including a massive operatic fireworks display that mirrors the dawn of creation, and then on to his fiery 1,650-foot ladder. Expect to be awed. (Netflix) 1:26

“Blue Jay”: When two high school sweethearts (Mark Duplass and Sarah Paulson) reconnect 20 years later, the attraction’s still there, as are the emotional wounds. Shot in black and white and staged like a two-character theater piece, this talky adult drama works because the talented twosome understand the nuances of Duplass’ painfully realistic script. (Amazon Prime, Fandango Now, $4.99) 1:20